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Subjects

Abstract

Ultrathin two-dimensional nanosheets of layered transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are fundamentally and technologically intriguing. In contrast to the graphene sheet, they are chemically versatile. Mono- or few-layered TMDs — obtained either through exfoliation of bulk materials or bottom-up syntheses — are direct-gap semiconductors whose bandgap energy, as well as carrier type (n- or p-type), varies between compounds depending on their composition, structure and dimensionality. In this Review, we describe how the tunable electronic structure of TMDs makes them attractive for a variety of applications. They have been investigated as chemically active electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution and hydrosulfurization, as well as electrically active materials in opto-electronics. Their morphologies and properties are also useful for energy storage applications such as electrodes for Li-ion batteries and supercapacitors.

Acknowledgements

M.C. acknowledges support from the National Science Foundation IGERT programme (DGE 0903661). H.Z. acknowledges support from the Singapore National Research Foundation under the CREATE programme: 'Nanomaterials for Energy and Water Management', and NTU under the Start-Up Grant M4080865.070.706022. H.S.S. acknowledges support from WCU (World Class University) programme (R31-2008-000-20012-0) and the grant (Code No. 2011-0031630) from the Center for Advanced Soft Electronics under the Global Frontier Research Program through the National Research Foundation funded by MEST of Korea. G.E. acknowledges the Singapore National Research Foundation for NRF Research Fellowship (NRF-NRFF2011-02). L.L. acknowledges support from Academia Sinica Taiwan. We acknowledge Jieun Yang for editorial help and TOC artwork. K.P.L. acknowledges the NRF-CRP award 'Novel 2D materials with tailored properties: beyond graphene' (R-144-000-295-281).